Monday Mural II - Peles Castle V

It's Monday and again I join a small group of bloggers posting interesting murals found around the world. Check them out... one in Ontario, one in Flint, MI, and the other where the mural blog-hop started, in Oakland, CA. Why not join and show us yours?

Today my mural is in Romania. This is the delightful fresco in a small courtyard near the public entrance to the fairytale Peles Castle in Sinaia. The link takes you to my earlier posts on this outstanding castle built between 1873 and 1914 (and a couple of other castles).

Sinaia, 2011

T is for Theatre - Peles Castle IV

It's time for Alphabe-Thursday and the letter is T. My T today is for theatre... that is theater for my American blogger friends. 

While I often use American spelling, in my mind, the King's English befits this word. Especially so when the subject of my post is the elaborate private theatre in the gorgeous Peles Castle in Romania I visited last May (first introduced here and here). 

The theatre, built in the style of Louis XIV, holds sixty seats.  

We were not allowed in the room, so these are only quick walk-by shots taken from the door.

 Sinaia, Romania, 2011

This second photo is very similar, but I wanted to show you as much as possible, as I find this mellow yellow room quite extraordinary. Enlarge the photos to take a closer look at the murals painted by the Austrian Art Nouveau duo Gustav Klimt and Franz Matsch. I'm sorry I didn't stop to take better photos of the murals, but believe me, this palace produces sensory overload!

A final piece of historical trivia: the first motion picture in Romania was viewed in this room in 1906.

Peles Castle III - Reflections

Yesterday I showed you the exterior of this ravishing summer palace for the royalty of Romania. Today I bring you indoors again, for just a few glimpses of the many styles of mirrors in this 160-room castle. The reflections are for the community over at James' Weekend Reflections.

This first mirror is the tallest in the castle, reaching over five meters. The story is told that it came from Venice by boat, up the Danube all the way to Giurgiu, and was taken over land by oxcart the rest of the 200+ kms up into the mountains to Sinaia.

 Sinaia, Romania, 2011

Both the Murano glass mirror and the Rococo style mirror are worth enlarging for a closer look at exquisite details.

The first large wood-framed mirror below is found in the hall of mirrors, while small mirrors graced the corners of the stunning tapestries in the oriental style guest room.

In case you missed my long shot of the castle two days ago, here is another one reflected in the window of our car with yours truly behind the camera.

Would you be interested to see more of the interior?

[SkyWatch] Peles Castle II

This is my second post on the magnificent Peles Castle in Sinaia. The beautiful blue sky made the perfect backdrop for this outstanding site and so I link this post to SkyWatch Friday.

The statue in the first image is King Carol I, under whose reign the country gained its independence. He commissioned the building of this summer palace. He was Romania's longest serving monarch, and he died and was buried there in 1914.

 Sinaia, Romania, 2011

 [click on images to see wonderful details of construction]

The wife of King Carol, Queen Elisabeth, was quite a personality herself. She wrote this in her journal while the castle was being built:

Italians were masons, Romanians were building terraces, the Gypsies were coolies. Albanians and Greeks worked in stone, Germans and Hungarians were carpenters. Turks were burning brick. Engineers were Polish and the stone carvers were Czech. The Frenchmen were drawing, the Englishmen were measuring, and so was then when you could see hundreds of national costumes and fourteen languages in which they spoke, sang, cursed and quarreled in all dialects and tones, a joyful mix of men, horses, cart oxen and domestic buffaloes.

And we have the impression globalization is a recent phenomena? Migration is as old as these hills and will never stop.

I'll be sharing more photos of the interior tomorrow.

G is for Glass - Peles Castle I

Peles Castle, the summer residence of Romanian royalty between 1883 and 1947, and its 160 rooms hold some of the finest examples of European artistry, including these stunning crystal chandeliers.

Sinaia, Romania, 2011

The chandeliers are made in colored Murano glass from the famous Venetian island. (Both the history and the art of Murano glass-making are fascinating reads.) The ceiling is made from carved lime wood, gold plated, and has in the center a replica of a Giorgio Vasari painting done by the then unknown 21-year-old student Gustav Klimt. (If I'd known that while in the castle, I'd have taken better photos of the fresco! My eyes were dazzled by the crystal glass!)

 [For exquisite detail, click to enlarge.]

Admired by many as one of the most beautiful in Europe, this castle nestled at the foot of the Bucegi Mountains in Sinaia was built in wood, stone, bricks and marble. The main architectural style is German new-Renaissance, but there are visible elements of Italian Renaissance, Gothic, German Baroque and French Rococo style.

Today's post is for Alphabe-Thursday where the letter of the week is G.  There is more to share on this wonderful Peles Castle, so do come back.

S is for Sightseeing in Sinaia

At the Sinaia Monastery in the Prahova Valley in Romania, home to less than 20 Christian Orthodox monks, there are two churches, an old (biserica veche) and a new (biserica mare). Both the town and the monastery (completed in 1695) were named after Mount Sinai.

Today I show you the newer, The Great Church, built between 1842 and 1846.

[click to enlarge for more detail]

Sinaia, Romania, 2011

This is my contribution to ABC Wednesday where S is the letter of the week.